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Man charged with beating homeless man to death in a Charlestown park

A Suffolk County grand jury yesterday indicted Clifton Moore for first-degree murder for the beating death of Joshua Eric Rivera, 54, in Ryan Playground on Sept. 6, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports.

Evidence developed by Boston Police homicide detectives and Suffolk prosecutors suggests that, in the early morning hours of Sept. 6, witnesses in the Ryan Playground observed a man wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt wielding a long item, possibly a stick or a bat. The witnesses observed this man repeatedly striking what they initially believed was an empty park bench. After he left the area, the witnesses discovered Rivera’s body on the bench and called 911.

Rivera suffered multiple blunt force injuries to the head and died at the scene.

MBTA public safety cameras captured a man matching the assailant’s clothing description and carrying a backpack and baseball bat as he entered the park a short time prior to the attack. The footage shows him leaving the park about a minute and a half later, prosecutors said.